


Out of Orbit

by elfdaughter (hopper)



Category: Kuroko no Basuke | Kuroko's Basketball
Genre: Fluff, Getting Together, Love Confessions, M/M, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-02-27
Updated: 2015-02-27
Packaged: 2018-03-15 08:56:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,625
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3441188
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hopper/pseuds/elfdaughter
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kise is failing astronomy class.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Out of Orbit

**Author's Note:**

  * For [onecentpipit](https://archiveofourown.org/users/onecentpipit/gifts), [cerisen](https://archiveofourown.org/users/cerisen/gifts), [maudlintrash](https://archiveofourown.org/users/maudlintrash/gifts).



> This fic is for my kusobas tlist. It's also a renumeration in advance for the awful angst I'm gonna write after this fluff. 8D

Astronomy was supposed to be a blow-off class at Kaijou — at least that's what Kise had heard all the upperclassmen say. Maybe the teacher just decided to be a hardass this year. Kise sulked at the 30 on the quiz he got handed back at the end of class. Yeah, that must be it.

"No, I'm pretty sure you're just a dumbass," Kasamatsu growled, clipping Kise with the shoe in his hand. "Look, you didn't even fill in the planets in the right order! What the hell is Jupiter doing on this side of the asteroid belt?"

"I forgot Mercury," Kise sniffled, rubbing the back of his head.

For a second, Kasamatsu looked as though he was seriously contemplating thwacking Kise again only to shake his head and tug on his shoe instead. "Hurry up and change or you'll be late for practice. And if you're late, I'm gonna kick you so hard you'll orbit the sun."

"Yes, Captain."

 

"Didn't you watch Sailor Moon with your sisters growing up?” Kuroko asked, stripping the wrapper from his straw and folding it into an accordion.

"Ah! Kurokocchi remembers!" Kise was delighted.

Kuroko stabbed the straw into his milkshake. "If you can recall the Sailor Senshi, then you ought to know the planets, too."

"But their names are all in English!" Kise wailed. He brightened momentarily. "English is my best subject." His face fell. "But that won't help on an astronomy test." He flopped down on the table. "Not fair!"

"Oi, keep it down, Kise! People are starting to look at us funny."

Kagami had been growing progressively more irritated all afternoon. First, Kise would not quit texting Kuroko all throughout practice. Then, he had to show up at Maji Burger unannounced and slide into the booth next to Kuroko. Next to Kuroko meant across from Kagami, whose diminishing pile of burgers served as a very poor buffer against Kise's melodramatics. What did a guy have to do around here to enjoy a post-practice snack in peace.

Kise had pulled out a marker pen and was now doodling away on the side of Kuroko's cup that faced him. Hearts. Crying face. Smiley face. Sad face. More hearts. Kuroko moved his hand away as the inky nib of the pen drew too close to his fingertips.

“While the scouts' names may be in English," said Kuroko over the squeak of felt-tip on styrofoam, "their powers correspond to the kanji of their planets. Mars Snake Fire. Mercury Aqua Mist."

Kagami looked at Kuroko like he grew an extra head.

"Did they not air Sailor Moon in America, Kagami-kun?" Kuroko asked with his usual unblinkingness.

"Yeah but that doesn't mean I watched it!" said Kagami, indignant.

“That means you missed out on a really good show!” Kise lamented, marker masterpiece forgotten in favor of leaning over the table with indignation to match Kagami's. A mother balancing trays for her children shoots them a look of deep concern, to which Kise remained perfectly oblivious. Kagami caught the full brunt of her disapproval and prickled in embarrassment.

"You are so embarrassing," Kagami hissed across the table. "We can't take you anywhere."

"But you guys never invite me anyway!" Kise's voice rose a pitch.

"Yes — and this is why!" In his frustration, Kagami gestured too wide and knocked a burger squarely into Kise's face. Kise took it as a challenge and threw his pen in retaliation.

Kagami roared when he realized that the pen was uncapped, and that he now sported a thick black squiggle from cheek to chin.

Kise gasped, though not in dismay for having accidentally drawn on Kagami's face.

"Where's Kurokocchi?"

 

The three of them sat in a row on the edge of the fountain in the park across the street, Kuroko between Kagami and Kise like a kindergarten teacher separating a pair of squabbling kids.

"I can't believe Kurokocchi sneaked past me, and I didn't even notice," Kise fretted against Kuroko's back. Kagami gave him a dirty look over the top of Kuroko's head.

"I can't believe the two of you got kicked out of Maji Burger while I was in the restroom," said Kuroko, dabbing ineffectually at Kagami's face with a damp tissue. The ink in Kise's marker pen did not seem to be of the washable sort. "It's no use," Kuroko declared, surveying Kagami's smudged cheek. "You will need to use soap."

Kagami leaned over the water to grimace at his reflection. "This had better come off when I shower, or else."

"Or else what?" asked Kise, all innocence.

"Or else you're dead," Kagami muttered at the same time as Kuroko said, "No death threats, Kagami-kun."

Kagami decided to head home after that. He stalked off cheek in hand, looking for all the world like a man suffering from a toothache. 

Kise felt a light jab to his arm. He glanced down into Kuroko's impassive face.

"Kurokocchi! I thought you left with Kagamicchi..." The prodding continued until Kise finally noticed what Kuroko was holding.

"Your pen," said Kuroko, flatly. "You must have forgotten it when you and Kagami-kun left the restaurant in such a hurry, so I grabbed it for you."

"Waah so thoughtful!” Kise exclaimed, wrapping both hands around Kuroko's and pulling him to his feet. "Kurokocchi really is the best. Please date me."

"Please stop being so sarcastic."

Kise's smile diminished like someone had turned a dial. It never failed to impress Kuroko, the way Kise's expressions changed so quickly and yet transitioned so smoothly that it seemed only natural to be laughing one second and tearful the next. A good quality for a model to have, Kuroko mused. Kise must be very easy to photograph.

"I really do think that Kurokocchi is a kind person, and anyone would be very lucky to date you," Kise was saying. "I'm not being sarcastic or anything when I say that."

"Just 'thanks' is fine. Kise-kun tends to make a big deal out of things,” Kuroko said quietly.

Kise was still peering expectantly at him. Kuroko cleared his throat, looking down at their still joined hands.

"Ah! Right. Pen, pen, pen. I should put it back in my bag, shouldn't I, before I lose it again..." Kise pulled away, fumbling to unbuckle the flap of his schoolbag.

Kuroko reached over to hold the bag open so that Kise could slip the pen inside.

"Did Kise-kun come straight from school?" he asked.

Kise nodded. "I caught a ride with my manager. But he'll be staying overnight for work, so I was planning to take the train back on my own."

"I will walk with you to the station."

Kise blinked at Kuroko, uncertain if he had heard correctly.

"That is, if Kise-kun doesn't have other business to take care of in the area," Kuroko amended, turning away. "I don't know why Kise-kun is in Tokyo today."

Kise looked torn. At last, he shook his head and said, "I only came by to see how you were doing, Kurokocchi." This revelation was greeted by silence. When Kuroko turned to face him again, he appeared to be in thought.

"It's an hour from Yokohama,” Kuroko said after several seconds.

“But barely forty minutes by car! We left way before rush hour traffic, you see. The train takes longer."

"I see." Though his voice remained unperturbed, a very faint crease appeared between Kuroko's eyes.

Kise added hurriedly, "I don't want to keep you, if you have to go— "

"Kise-kun is already here. We might as well hang out until you need to go home," Kuroko said before Kise could finish.

"Really, Kurokocchi?" Kise tried not to sound too hopeful.

Kuroko nodded. "I was planning to shoot some hoops with Kagami-kun until dinnertime. But seeing as you're the reason why Kagami-kun had to leave early..."

Kise's eyes lit up. "If that's the case, then I accept my punishment!"

The first court they passed was already occupied by a bunch of middle schoolers, but the next one was empty. Kuroko set his bag down, taking out a ball and spinning it idly. Kuroko rarely showed off, but he had always been uncharacteristically proud of the only trick that he'd managed to pick up from Aomine in middle school. Kise placed his own bag down next to Kuroko's.

He remembered an evening a lot like this one, shortly after the first friendly match between Kaijou and Seirin, when Kuroko had given Kise and Kagami the slip to challenge some street court bullies on his own. Outnumbered and outmatched, Kuroko had approached his adversaries with no more than the basketball spinning away on his finger while Kise and Kagami looked on in consternation. Maybe, Kise thought, that was simply Kuroko's way of borrowing Aomine's confidence.

"What are you waiting for, Kise-kun?" Kuroko's voice pulled him out of his thoughts.

Kise shook his head and shrugged out of his blazer. “Hey, tell Kagamicchi I'm sorry for getting ink on his face?"

"You don't sound very sincere."

"Then I'll count on Kurokocchi to make sure I am!"

They ended up playing until the lampposts flickered on along the street. Afterwards, Kuroko walked Kise to the station like he promised. Kuroko bought them both ice cream (even though it was honestly too late in the season to be having ice cream outdoors), and they ate together while waiting for Kise's train to arrive.

"Kurokocchi," Kise said, “you didn’t have to pay for mine, too."

"Kise-kun beat me fair and square," Kuroko replied. "Kise-kun always bought for the whole team after practice whenever Aomine-kun beat you one-on-one. Which was every time."

Kise winced, laughing in spite of himself. "Ouch! Kurokocchi, that last part was unnecessary."

"However," Kuroko went on, serious, "I really meant what I said at the Interhigh quarterfinals. In a one-on-one between Aomine-kun and Kise-kun now, the winner would be impossible to call."

"Wouldn't that be something, if Aominecchi had to buy us all ice cream," Kise sighed.

Wordlessly, Kuroko bit into his popsicle.

Kise leaned over. "Kurokocchi! Isn't that too cold? What flavor did you get?"

"Gorigori-kun Soda,” Kuroko replied around the bulge in his cheek.

Kise grinned. "So nostalgic!"

"I like it. It's crunchy."

"Let me have a bite, too!"

“Are you Murasakibara-kun?"

Kise huffed. "Kurokocchi's being mean!"

"Here."

Kise nearly hit his nose on the blue block of ice in surprise as Kuroko held his popsicle out impassively.

"Th-thanks!" Kise stammered, leaning forward to take a bite. There didn't seem to be any way really for him to bite into the popsicle without overlapping the chunk Kuroko had already bitten off. Blushing furiously, Kise shut his eyes as he closed his teeth around a corner.

The freezing sensation shot instantly through his incisors. "Too cold!" Kise wailed, tears springing to his eyes. "How can you just bite it like that, Kurokocchi! You're not human!"

"Oh no, my secret's out," Kuroko deadpanned even as he stroked the back of Kise's bent head comfortingly. "I've been a robot all this time. I had everyone fooled, but Kise-kun was just too clever for me to pull the wool over his eyes."

"Kurokochiii," Kise whined when Kuroko's hand dropped away.

Kuroko lightly bumped his arm. "Finish your soft serve, Kise-kun. It will be a pain to try and eat it on the crowded train."

Kise's gaze fell on his own ice cream cone. The vanilla soft serve was starting to look a bit droopy, though thankfully it had not begun to melt yet because the air was so chilly. Impulsively, he held the cone out toward Kuroko.

Kuroko blinked up at him for a second before helping himself to a bite. The heat rushed back to Kise's cheeks all at once, and he unthinkingly pressed the ice cream to Kuroko's lips. Kuroko obliged him by taking another, smaller bite, and Kise watched, transfixed, as Kuroko licked away traces of ice cream that had smudged the edge of his mouth. Kise did not realize that he had completely frozen in place, staring, until Kuroko grasped at his elbow and gently pushed the cone back towards him.

"Thank you, Kise-kun, but that's enough for me."

"O-okay..." Kise couldn't help feeling simultaneously elated and like he wanted to die from embarrassment. 

They finished eating in relatively undisturbed silence but for Kuroko's stoic crunching, a couple of girls who recognized Kise from Zunon and stopped to take selfies with him, and Kise trying to obliquely snap a photo of Kuroko while the latter was preoccupied with his popsicle (it was unsuccessful; Kuroko somehow turned and crouched down to brush a speck of dust from the top of his shoe at the exact moment Kise pressed the shutter. Kise was never going to get a proper contact photo of Kuroko for his contacts at this rate).

Kise's train arrived shortly after, and he boarded in a throng of people. By the time he made his way over to a window, Kuroko had already vanished into the crowd. Kise sighed and took a seat. He didn't realize how tired he felt until he nodded off and ended up missing his stop entirely.

Walking the last few blocks to his house, Kise composed a text.

 _Midorimacchi! When kagamicchi wrote his name and number on your hand how long did it take to wash off?_

A few houses later, his phone screen lit up.

`Why`, read Midorima's curt reply.

_I might have drawn on kagamicchis face by accident and he might have threatened me with death_

`I begrudgingly commend him. Also tell the idiot to use rubbing alcohol instead of soap. It will come off immediately.`

`PS. Never text this number again.`

_Thanks midorimacchi!!!!!! u r a giant sweetheart ( T 3T)_

Kise forwarded Midorima's message to Kagami as he unlocked his front door. "I'm home!" he sang out.

His older sister Ami came running down the stairs. "Ryou-chan! You're so late, you missed dinner. Did something happen?" Kise shook his head, stifling a yawn. "How was school today?"

"I went to Tokyo after school. I fell asleep on the train ride back, though, and got off a couple stops late. Also I got a 30 on my astronomy quiz, and everyone thinks I'm an idiot. But that's nothing new."

"Poor baby," Ami fussed as Kise sat blearily tugging off his shoes. "Bombing a test and missing your stop and having to walk home alone in the dark on top of everything. You should have given me a call! I would have gone to pick you up."

“But I'm fine," Kise smiled at her sleepily.

Ami tsked, divesting him of his bag and his blazer. "You're all sweaty. You could catch a cold like this, you know. Is your spare uniform clean? I'll go get it out so you'll have it ready in the morning."

"Thanks, sis. You're an angel."

"Ah, Ryou-ryou's home!" His other older sister Minako poked her head into the hallway. "You must be starving. I can heat up the leftovers for you."

"Nope, I'm good. Just gonna wash up and go to bed," Kise said, turning the corner into the bathroom.

"Are you sure?" Minako called after him. "It's no trouble at all."

“Oh, leave him alone, Mina-chan," Ami said from Kise's room where she was setting out his clothes for the next day. "Ryou-chan's had a bad day, and he just wants to rest."

"I had a great day!" Kise stuck his head out from behind the shower curtain to object. "Kurokocchi played basketball with me."

His statement was greeted by expectant silence. "Go on?" Ami prompted after a moment had passed.

"Yeah, I thought there'd be more,” Minako chortled. "Something exciting."

"Kurokocchi played basketball with me, so it was a great day!" Kise huffed, drowning out his sisters’ knowing laughter with running water.


End file.
